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Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld again dismisses talk that his time is short as the top civilian at the Pentagon. The Washington rumor mill has put Rumsfeld's job on the line in the past -- and been wrong. Renee Montagne talks to John Hendren about Rumsfeld's status, and the status of the initiatives he brought with him to the Pentagon five years ago.

General Motors and Delphi, its former subsidiary, will offer early retirement and buy-out packages to more than 100,000 workers. In a deal negotiated with the United Auto Workers union, GM will offer incentives ranging from $35,000 to $140,000 each. While some workers said they were waiting to see the details, many said they doubted the package was attractive enough to induce them to retire. Jerome Vaughn of Detroit Public Radio reports.

A group of senators is in Beijing this week, meeting with top Chinese officials about the value of the Chinese currency, the yuan. Democrats and Republicans have authored a bill threatening China with a huge tariff increase on its exports to the United States unless Beijing allows the yuan to strengthen significantly against the dollar.

Japan can call itself the world champion of baseball. The Japanese team captured the inaugural World Baseball Classic by beating Cuba 10-6 in the championship game San Diego.

Music journalist Ashley Kahn talks with guitarist and songwriter Al Anderson about his new album, After Hours. Anderson has been in the music business for four decades. He has written a string of country hits for Nashville's biggest stars. Despite his success as a songwriter, Anderson says the urge to perform again has proved too strong to resist.

Defending champion North Carolina suffered a shocking loss to George Mason in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, seeing its dreams of another title end in the second round. Steve Inskeep talks to commentator John Feinstein about the first weekend of March Madness.

Election officials in Belarus say incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko has won the presidential vote by a huge margin. But the main opposition candidate is calling for a new election as thousands of his supporters jammed a main square in central Minsk.

They're an odd couple. Angel-voiced Scot Isobel Campbell and gravelly grunge rocker Mark Lanegan of Seattle combine their talents on the CD Ballad of the Broken Seas. Campbell tells Liane Hansen about life after Belle and Sebastian.

Joshua Littman was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, a form of autism, when he was 5. When he was 9, he joined MENSA. Recently, Joshua, 12, wrote a list of questions to ask his mother.

Los Angeles Times and Morning Edition film critic Kenneth Turan reviews Thank You For Smoking. It is a satirical film about a super-lobbyist for the tobacco industry.